It is a typical July night for teenagers. Summer is in full swing and hanging out with friends is a treasured past time for students taking a break from the long days in the classroom, before the real world collides with their sense of reality. As the sun sets later, those teenage days extend to darker hours, often fueled by the mornings they rise late. So the question is, what to do to fill that time, between the hot afternoons and falling asleep again?

In a growing, but still underground trend, kids in Issaquah are playing a game called “fugitive.”

Described by one participant as cops and robbers on steroids, the rules are pretty simple — one person trying to elude another.

While Issaquah Police last week warned of the dangers of such a game, according to some it is offering a much-needed fun event for teens in the area.

“What I tell a lot of people is, that I like playing it because I don’t party,” said James, a teenager who has grown up playing fugitive in Issaquah. “I don’t drink, so it’s something to do. What’s the alternative? You can either stay in your house and play video games or go out and get drunk and drive home drunk. I always say that it’s (playing fugitive) an alternative. It’s something to do.”

The Reporter found James through searching Facebook sites dedicated to fugitive, and through the referral of other Issaquah fugitive players. During a meeting at a local Starbucks in Issaquah, James discussed the local version of the game and his thoughts on recent incidences involving players of fugitive.

He has played the game for the past five years, since he was 12-years-old, when he tagged along with his older sisters.

Back then the game in Issaquah was mostly college kids home on break looking for something to do, and usually involved 30 to 40 players, James said. Since that time it’s grown with the largest Issaquah game boasting over 150 on one night.

The Issaquah game, which is regularly one of the best attended games in the area, follows a traditional format, according to James.

Everyone meets at a pre-determined starting point. The group chooses a few drivers, who then pick chasers, usually friends of drivers, James said. The drivers, with around four chasers per car, head to the ending location. Once there they call someone back at the starting point and the game is officially off.

“When it starts it’s almost like a stampede in a way,” he said. “That’s one of my favorite parts, starting off, it’s just thrilling.”

From there the drivers, loaded with the chasers, head in the general direction of the starting point to start searching for runners.

“It’s kind of like a clash with all the drivers going this way and all the runners going that way,” James said. “It gives us time to try and spread out. Once the drivers find us they have to physically tag us, so there are people who will play it more safe and they can go longer routes and won’t necessarily get chased. If you’re new and not very confident I say to just try and get there without being tagged. If you’re more experienced and know the game then try and take more open roads where the chances of getting chased are more likely. I think that when you get chased, for me, it’s one of the biggest adreline rushes.”

The game also appeals to a wide range of people because, as James said, you don’t have to be super athletic.

“In my personal opinion of why I like the game so much, if you’re not very athletic and you don’t want to run you can drive. If you don’t want to run long distances then you can chase or if you’re ready to get a work out you can be a runner,” he said.

Traditionally, fugitive is a night game. The origins and creators have been muddled over time, but the fact people play at night has remained constant. So has the fact that police interest has peaked over time.

Running into trouble

Much like capture the flag for an older age group, the teens are focused on not getting caught, but the ways they manage to do that has earned them scrutiny from an older audience.

Last week the Issaquah Police Department issued a press release warning the community about the fugitive game and the possible illegal activity and danger associated with the game.

Police have received several calls in which juveniles in dark clothes were near closed businesses and running through private yards, as well as reckless vehicle complaints.

“Our police officers are on high alert for any signs of this game taking place in Issaquah,” said Commander Scott Behrbaum in the press release from the city. “We’re also asking local parents to talk to their teens about the hazards of this game, which can be unsafe for both bystanders and participants.”

While illegal activity is not encouraged by the organizers of the game, James said, as it gets bigger it’s harder to control.

“We tell people to follow certain rules and people break them, which is when, unfortunately, we get in trouble, but there’s not too much I can do about it,” he said.

James said there have been incidences that have occurred, like a young player getting hit by a blow gun dart while playing two weeks ago.

On July 14, a female playing the game reported she was hit with a dart from a blow gun while walking with her friends in the 1600 block of NW Gilman Blvd. around 10:45 p.m. The dart punctured the skin on her back. Currently police have no leads on a suspect. Anyone with questions or information to share should contact Commander Scott Behrbaum with the IPD at 425-837-3200.

“What I say is if you use common sense and you’re smart you won’t get hurt,” said James. “There are people who will run through people’s back yard, which is when there is potential to get hurt. I’ve played a long time and I rarely get caught, for the most part I keep it safe. The place she was at was in the middle of the intersection, it’s an open public area and for me, I would say there’s no connection to fugitive, because if there was, for a specific fugitive player, they would probably do it more secretively.”

While the game is in the name of fun, James said they do warn people before hand.

“I think we have to take the necessary precautions of warning everyone before hand,” he said. “As bad as it sounds, it’s play at your own risk. You have to be safe and now that’s it’s getting big, it’s getting negative (attention). All you’ve got to do is stay smart and don’t do dumb things.”

According to the Issaquah Police, recent calls have been about groups of kids running through private property.

Joe Phillips, with the police’s records department, said most of the time the people calling don’t know the kids are playing fugitive, just that they are on private property.

“The kids playing the game ‘fugitive’ should never be on the private property of Issaquah residents and the Issaquah Police will respond to all calls for service,” he said. Usually, he added, the police are able to locate the kids and advise them not to trespass.

Willing to take the risk

The game itself is spreading like a teenage fashion fad. James said he knows games are played in Kirkland, San Diego, northern California cities, as well as on the East Coast.

“It’s definitely spreading,” said James. Part of that James said is because the game is just plain fun — friends tell friends and suddenly word gets around, especially in this age of social media access, where every kid has a cell phone, MySpace, Facebook and Twitter accounts.

“The game itself is so fun and one of the things that I always like is when everyone’s done and is at the destination, just kind of hanging out, everyone has a story to tell,” said James.

That wildfire word of mouth is something of a double-edged sword. Like all things, at some point too much might just be too much.

“There’s both positives and negatives (to people finding out),” James said. “If it’s well known then it explodes and it’s a more intense game, but then there’s the safety issue and then police will get involved. For me personally, I liked it three years ago. The people who were playing were better, they’d played longer.”

Lately James said the age range of the people playing the game has been anywhere from 8-year-olds to 35-year-olds.

“It’s underground to a large range of people,” he said.

Occasionally some of those varying age groups involved have trouble with the rules.

“A lot of times it’s the drivers who are 17-year-old guys with the friends in the car trying to be cool, which is usually when we run into trouble,” said James. “We do lay down the rules.”

Even with those rules there may come a day when the game gets shut down, which James said he suspects would be if someone got hurt.

“The only reason I could see (we wouldn’t continue) would be police; someone getting hurt. There is that potential and I could see it happening in the future, but right now we just hope that everything will be alright. There’s always that risk. When you go skiing you take that risk; it’s kind of the same thing,” he said.